"The second group of young' people, who come into the hands of the Police, are those accused breaking the law. In all, 981 young! people under the age of 18° were before the Court during the year, '809 boys and 82 girls. Seventy per cent, or 680 were unemployed. When fo this fs added that 87 per cent, or '863 were involved in thieving in one form or another it 1s obvious that many are driven in wrongdoing by lack of means to maintain a livelihood. Of the total of 981, '201 or 26 per cent. hed had previous convictions. Six had as many as eight previous convictions, had three, "62 had two. ar 142 had one. It fs obvious there is a field for preventive work.
"Beginnings have been made in a programme aimed to prevent further lapses. From April, 1940, one weekly visit, and from October, two weekly visits have been paid by the specially qualified social' worker to the Reformatory in the Shanghai Municipal Gad. The aim is to Interview young people, to understand causes of delinquency and to offer them help and friendly advice fon their release. In nine months, as 33¢ young people have been interviewed, 203 boys in the Reformatory, 41 girls' in the Women's Detention House, and five boys living in their homes. Of these 304 oF 91 per cent. were guilty of thieving in some form. Fifty-two per cent. were either orphans oF had but one parent: perhaps to this condition of the broken home can
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.